Trinity recognizes the importance of discipling the youth that are a part of our community. While at a different stage in life than the younger group of children at Trinity, the reality is that these youth still need discipleship and depend on us—moms and dads, and spiritual aunts and uncles—to pass on our experience of knowing, loving and serving God. Or as Yaconelli puts it, “Youth ministry is about holding a young person’s deepest identity until he or she is able to see it too.”[1]This is an important and humbling responsibility during a formational time in which youth are changing physically, socially, intellectually, emotionally, morally and spiritually.[2] And so we look to God and to one another as we seek to answer the question: “What is it going to take to raise up the next generation of disciples?”

What follows is the Trinity Youth Ministry mission statement, a list of what we believe, as well as what we are striving to do to respond faithfully to this challenge:

The mission of the Trinity Youth Ministry is to come alongside parents, who join in God’s work, by engaging in relational ministry with our youth as they become followers of Jesus, participating with the Trinity community on our common mission.

This approach is family-centered, peer-centered and intergenerational (and of course, there is overlap between the areas):

Family-Centered

· Faith lived out at home/modeled by parents

· Youth involvement in the family’s Trinity Group

· Opportunities to equip parents to grow in discipling their children will be offered

Peer-Centered

· Partnering with other like-minded churches in the area for youth to engage in disciple-forming experiences on a regular basis; and/or youth gatherings for Trinity goers

· Peer small groups (gender specific)

· Service opportunities (both within Trinity and outside Trinity)

Intergenerational

· Mentoring relationships (one-on-one and peer groups lead by mentor)

· Participation in worship gatherings

· Participation in Trinity Groups

· Service opportunities

6-12th Grade: Our youth have their own groups outside of the gathering. The middle school and high school youth currently meet (separately) downstairs on Sunday mornings after the gathering until 1:15pm.